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Our Genealogy Helper

Introduction ...

We have a couple of goals for our Gazetteer:

  • That it be a tool which helps us with planning our trips.
  • We're trying to shape our Gazetteer as a tool to help us understand the community in which our ancestors lived, the community that was part of their daily lives.
  • On our trips, we try to visit those places where our ancestors left their footprints.

By learning about Otley (and the surrounding area) during the time that our ancestors lived, we hope to have a better understanding of both their community and its relationship to their lifes. We hope that this tool helps to give us an insight into their world.

As we add data and organize our Gazetteer to help with our family research, we will be adding to this our Genealogical Helper for Otley. While we don't have information that is specific to any given person or family, we intend to expand our understanding about where and how people lived.

Neighboring Counties ...

When searching for family records, we have frequently made the mistake of not checking the neighboring counties.

For example, we have great-grandparents who lived in the southwest corner of their home county. During their lives, most doctors and hospitals were in the next county to the west. Almost all of the nearby churches and cemeteries were in the county to the south.

So when searching for records, we had our best success by looking in neighboring counties instead of the county in which they lived:  their home county contained property and probate records; the county to the west contained birth and death records; the county to the south contained their burial records. If we hadn't included the neighboring counties, we would have missed many valuable sources of information.

If you're in a similar situation, we hope that the following information helps.

Otley is located in Marion County.

To see how the shape of Iowa's counties have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.

The following counties adjoin and form the boundaries of Marion County: Jasper, Lucas, Mahaska, Monroe, Polk, Poweshiek & Warren.

Below are the counties that are near Otley. For each of these counties, we show a sample of those communities that are closest to Otley:

  • Marion County     (The home county of Otley)
    • The following are listed by their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.
    • Pella
      (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
    • Knoxville
      (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Harvey
      (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harvey have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
      • Harvey is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 243 people
    • Pershing
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the south)
    • Pleasantville
      (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southwest)
    • Swan
      (14 miles [22.5 km] to the west)
    • Tracy
      (15 miles [24.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Attica
      (16 miles [25.7 km] to the south)
    • Indiana
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)
    • Marysville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the south)
    • Bussey
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southeast)
    • Melcher - Dallas
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Melcher - Dallas have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Melcher - Dallas
      • Melcher - Dallas is located in Marion County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,236 people
  • Jasper County
  • Lucas County
    • Williamson
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the southwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Williamson have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Williamson
      • Williamson is located in Lucas County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 157 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Williamson <1>
  • Mahaska County
  • Marshall County
    • Laurel
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the north)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Laurel have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Laurel
      • Laurel is located in Marshall County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 234 people
  • Monroe County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.
    • Lovilia
      (23 miles [37 km] to the south)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Lovilia have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Lovilia
      • Lovilia is located in Monroe County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 516 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Lovilia <1>
    • Bluff Creek
      (23 miles [37 km] to the southeast)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Bluff Creek. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bluff Creek
      • Bluff Creek is located in Monroe County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Bluff Creek
      • From Otley to Bluff Creek
  • Polk County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.
    • Runnells
      (17 miles [27.4 km] to the west)
    • Adelphi
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Adelphi. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Adelphi
      • Adelphi is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Adelphi
      • From Otley to Adelphi
    • Mitchellville
      (22 miles [35.4 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mitchellville have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mitchellville
      • Mitchellville is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 2,273 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mitchellville <1>
    • Carlisle
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
    • Santiago
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Santiago. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Santiago
      • Santiago is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Santiago
      • From Otley to Santiago
    • Rising Sun
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Rising Sun. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rising Sun
      • Rising Sun is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Rising Sun
      • From Otley to Rising Sun
    • Pleasant Hill
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Pleasant Hill have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Pleasant Hill
      • Pleasant Hill is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 10,025 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Pleasant Hill <1>
    • Altoona
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Altoona have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Altoona
      • Altoona is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 19,503 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Altoona <1>
    • Bondurant
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Bondurant have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bondurant
      • Bondurant is located in Polk County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 7,293 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bondurant <1>
    • Country Estate Village
      (28 miles [45.1 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Country Estate Village have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Country Estate Village
      • Country Estate Village is located in Polk County
    • Berwick
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northwest)
      • Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Berwick. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<3>
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Berwick
      • Berwick is located in Polk County
      • Google driving directions:
      • From your current location to Berwick
      • From Otley to Berwick
  • Poweshiek County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.
    • Searsboro
      (18 miles [29 km] to the northeast)
    • Grinnell
      (25 miles [40.2 km] to the northeast)
    • Montezuma
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the east)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Montezuma have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Montezuma
      • Montezuma is located in Poweshiek County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 1,388 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Montezuma <1>
    • Malcom
      (29 miles [46.7 km] to the northeast)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Malcom have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Malcom
      • Malcom is located in Poweshiek County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 275 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Malcom <1>
  • Wapello County
  • Warren County
    • The following are listed by their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.
    • Hartford
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hartford have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hartford
      • Hartford is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 780 people
      • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hartford <1>
    • Sandyville
      (19 miles [30.6 km] to the west)
    • Palmyra
      (20 miles [32.2 km] to the west)
    • Ackworth
      (23 miles [37 km] to the west)
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ackworth have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ackworth
      • Ackworth is located in Warren County
      • Population from the 2020 Census: 105 people
    • Milo
      (24 miles [38.6 km] to the southwest)
    • Lacona
      (26 miles [41.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Indianola
      (27 miles [43.5 km] to the west)
    • Liberty Center
      (30 miles [48.3 km] to the southwest)

For an expanded list of the communities that are closest to Otley, see our County-by-County Page for Otley.

Cemeteries Near Otley ...

Below are cemeteries that are in the vicinity of Otley.

This is a new section and is likely to have errors. If you find an error, such as a missing cemetery or we have the wrong name, please let us know. If you know of them, we would also appreciate learning about previous or alternate names.

If you need information about a burial or interment, photos, transcripts, how to contact the cemetery or local authorities, please visit our selection of Genealogy Websites (see below).

If not found below, our Cemetery List for Otley covers a larger area, with the cemeteries listed in alphabetical order.

The following cemeteries are listed based on their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.

  • Price Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Price Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Price Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Gibbens Cemetery
    (Less than 2 miles to the west)
  • Burkhalter Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Burkhalter Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Burkhalter Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • West Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the south)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the West Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the West Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Pendroy Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the northwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Pendroy Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Pendroy Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Hannold Cemetery
    (2 miles [3.2 km] to the southeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Hannold Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Hannold Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Mikesell Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Mikesell Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Mikesell Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Kleins Cemetery
    (3 miles [4.8 km] to the northeast)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Kleins Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Kleins Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Fairview Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the north)
  • Gifford Cemetery
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
  • Red Rock Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Red Rock Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Red Rock Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Ruckman Cemetery
    (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Ruckman Cemetery
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Ruckman Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
  • Continue List   (341 more) ...
    • Teter Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the southwest)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Teter Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Teter Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Coal Ridge Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coal Ridge Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coal Ridge Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Coal Ridge Church Cemetery
      (5 miles [8 km] to the south)
      • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for the Coal Ridge Church Cemetery
      • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for the Coal Ridge Church Cemetery have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.

Nearby Communities in 1895 ...

We've built the following list with information that came from an Atlas published by Rand McNally in 1895. The Atlas had details such as the population of the community (which appears to have come from the 1890 Census) and whether there was a post office and/or railroad service available. We also indicate if the community no longer exists and is now historic.<6>

The Rand McNally Atlas shows that Otley had a population of 271 people in 1895 with a post office and railroad service.

These communities are listed based on their distance from Otley, with the one closest to Otley listed first.

  • Cordova
    (4 miles [6.4 km] to the southwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Cordova have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cordova
    • Cordova is located in Marion County
  • Monroe
    (5 miles [8 km] to the northwest)
  • Howell ‑ Historic
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Howell have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Howell
    • Howell is located in Marion County
  • Pella
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the southeast)
  • Galesburg
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
  • Reasnor
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the north)
  • Flagler
    (9 miles [14.5 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Flagler have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Flagler
    • Flagler is located in Marion County
  • Knoxville
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Durham
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Durham have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Durham
    • Durham is located in Marion County
  • Harvey
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Harvey have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harvey
    • Harvey is located in Marion County
    • Population from the 2020 Census: 243 people
  • Killduff
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the northeast)
  • Percy ‑ Historic
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the west)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Percy have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Percy
    • Percy is located in Marion County
  • Continue List   (16 more) ...

We've also created an expanded list of communities that existed in the 1890's and were located in the area around Otley. See our List of 1890's Communities around Otley.

Newspapers Published in Otley ...

An ongoing effort between the Library of Congress and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has resulted in the National Digital Newspaper Program (NDNP).

To share their results, the partnership has created the Chronicling America website. The goal of this partnership is to assemble a database about the current and historic newspapers of the United States. This includes a growing collection of scanned images from selected papers. All of it available to the public on their website.

Using information that we've taken from the Chronicling America website, we've identified 94 newspapers that have been published in the area around Otley.

Although we're unaware of any newspapers that were published in the immediate area of Otley, there are papers which were published within 29 miles [46.7 km]<4>. A list of those papers, sorted by paper name, can be found on the Extended Newspaper List for Otley.

Websites to Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

When we do our genealogical research, we first turn to the websites from Cyndi's List, FamilySearch and Genealogy Trails. These websites offer the information directly or else point to where you can find it. Their information is open to everyone.

To help you get started, the following links will take you to the pages that are relevant to Otley:

Unfortunately, we don't know of a website for Otley. If you can help, please contact us through our Feedback Page.

The official website for State of Iowa: https://www.iowa.gov/

Footnotes ...

<1>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<2>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<3>An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.
<4>Our distances are not driving distances, but are calculated as a 'point-to-point' distance. A straight line distance ignores things like rivers, canyons, lakes, et cetera - it's truly a line from Point A (ie- Otley) to Point B.Our distance measurements begin at a specific point in Otley. The point we use is located at these GPS coordinates - Latitude: 41.4641, Longitude: -93.0350    
<5>The Find-a-Grave website is an excellent research tool with information about a cemetery's location and interments. They also offer a forum for their members which can provide additional help. More information about Find-a-Grave can be found on their website: findagrave.com.
<6>We use the term 'Historic' broadly and it generally means that the community no longer exists. However, it can also mean that the community might still exist, but was significantly larger or had a more 'official' existence in the past than it does now. Unfortunately our sources of data have proven to be unreliable. If you can provide us with more specific information about Otley, please let us know so that we can improve our accuracy.




 

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This page was last modified/updated: 28 Apr 2025